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UK government says it has no data on who uses datacentres
The report cites 315 datacentres in the queue to connect to the National Grid and notes the government is considering a scheme that could let projects bypass local planning.
The UK government said it does not hold information on who is using the country’s largest datacentres or what those sites are being used for, according to a freedom of information response highlighted by The Guardian Business. The Department for Science, Innovation and Technology said it did not hold the requested information, and the department has since been dissolved.
The disclosure adds to concerns about the environmental effects of the AI boom and about transparency around new capacity. The article points to hundreds of datacentres awaiting planning permission and 315 projects queueing to connect to the National Grid.
Ministers announced plans in January to allow qualifying datacentres to opt into the Nationally Significant Infrastructure Project scheme, a change that would let developments secure approval from government rather than local planning committees. Campaigners argue the approach insulates datacentres from local scrutiny.
The report also references prior concerns that some planned sites could produce higher carbon emissions than ExxonMobil in the UK and highlights worries about water availability. Water UK warned in July that the UK does not have enough water for datacentre expansion, while campaigners fear critical national infrastructure status could prioritize datacentres over households during droughts.